Three Roses
by MadD-NerdGirl
Summary: How much trouble can two little girls be for one adult man? Well, Garry is about to find out, as he has to take care of his two younger sisters, Ib and Mary. This is a series of short stories about the misadventures of Garry, Ib, and Mary, as they simply try to live a normal life together. (From the game "Ib", however, this is an AU. The short stories will not be written in order.)
1. Monday

The alarm rang out, signaling that it was six thirty in the morning. Monday. Garry rolled over in his bed and groaned as he slapped the snooze button on his alarm clock. He hated Mondays. He hated mornings. He hated having to go to work. He hated knowing that as soon as he got home from work he would have to work late into the night on his online college classes. He hated that he would have to repeat this same routine for the next four days. However, as he sat up in bed and picked up the small framed picture on his bedside table, he smiled and all of his negative feelings disappeared.

There were three people in the picture. In the center was Garry, bent down on one knee with his arms wrapped around two small girls. The brunette on his right had bright red eyes and was smiling shyly at the camera. The blond on his left had large blue eyes and an infectious, energetic smile. She looked like she had been laughing when the picture was being taken. Both girls had their arms wrapped around Garry's waist in a hug as he pulled them close to him. Garry smiled and chuckled to himself. _His sisters._

He set the picture down and stood up. Still dressed in his nightshirt and pajama pants, Garry walked out of his room and down the hall. He knocked gently on his sisters' bedroom door, and when he got no response, he opened the door and walked in.

"Ib! Mary! Time to get up!" Garry called. Both girls moaned and pulled their blankets over their heads. Garry laughed a little and walked over to Ib's side of the room and sat on her bed. He could see a few strands of her brown hair peeking out from underneath the covers.

"Hey, Ib, it's time for school," he said as he gently pulled her blankets off of her head.

"Garry!" Ib grumbled as she desperately tried to pull her blankets back up. However, Garry was able to hold on to the blanket in one hand while also tickling Ib with the other. Ib shrieked and laughed as she tried to fend off her older brother's attack. Garry laughed and then laughed even harder when Mary yelled at them to be quiet from the other side of the small room.

"Oh Mary! You're next!" Garry exclaimed. Before the girl could react, Garry ripped off her blankets and began to tickle her. She laughed and snorted and swatted at Garry.

"Are you going to get up and get ready for school?" he asked.

"Yes! Whatever! Just stop tickling me!" Mary cried. Garry stopped and laughed as Mary tried to catch her breath.

"Good morning!" Garry said. Ib and Mary rolled their eyes, but their annoyance with him was shown to be fake when they both smiled. Both girls muttered out a "good morning" and then walked over to their closet and began to pick out their outfits for the day. Seeing that they were both getting ready, Garry retreated back to his own bedroom. As he reached into his closet, he pulled out his work clothes and got dressed. For his job at the local cafe, he had to wear a light blue polo, which he tucked into a pair of khakis. He then pinned his name tag onto the left side of his shirt and then went downstairs into the kitchen.

Ib and Mary still had not come out of their room, so Garry guessed that they were still getting dressed. He pulled out three bowls, three spoons, a box of cereal, and a carton of milk, and then set about preparing their breakfast. As he finished pouring the cereal and milk, Ib and Mary came walking down into the kitchen, wearing their favorite outfits. Ib wore a white blouse with a red ribbon wrapped around her neck. She also had on a red skirt, black knee-high socks, and her red Mary Janes. Mary wore a long, green dress with a blue ribbon wrapped around her neck, black tights, and a pair of brown flats. The two girls sat down at the table as Garry handed them their cereal bowls.

"Thanks Garry!" they said in unison.

"You're welcome!" Garry smiled as he sat down to eat his own breakfast.

After eating, Garry set the empty bowls in the sink and the three of them then went off to brush their hair and teeth. Once they were ready, Ib and Mary grabbed their backpacks and Garry grabbed his wallet and keys. As they stepped outside, Garry hugged his little sisters and waved as they ran off to their bus stop. He then hopped into his car, started the engine, and drove off.

* * *

Work at the cafe had been busy to say the least. Things had started out slow - making for a long morning - but as soon as lunch time rolled around, the small cafe had been filled with customers. Garry worked at the cash register, and dealing with some of the moodier customers was definitely difficult without lashing out at them when they demanded the fastest service because they were in a rush. So, as he pulled into his driveway, he was relieved to see his sisters running down the sidewalk from their bus stop. They could make him feel better after a hectic work day.

"Garry!" they exclaimed as he stepped out of his car. He laughed as they ran into him at full speed, pushing him back a step.

"Hey! How was school?" he asked.

"Good!" Mary replied. Ib simply nodded in agreement.

"That's good," Garry said. "Do you have any homework?" Both girls sighed and nodded. Garry laughed.

"Hey, it's alright, so do I." Ib and Mary smiled a little at that and then Garry led them all inside the house. All three of them then retreated into their rooms to start their schoolwork.

Sitting down at his desk with his laptop in front of him, Garry powered it on and began the assignments for his online college classes. Time seemed to fly as he worked through everything, and before he knew it, it was time for dinner. Unfortunately, he had barely made a dent in his assignments, which meant that he was most likely going to have to stay up late to finish everything. Standing up from his seat, Garry left his room and walked into the kitchen. Pulling out the necessary ingredients and cooking utensils, Garry began to make three servings of macaroni and cheese. Once he finished, he set the steaming bowls of cheesy noodles on the table and poured three cups of milk. With everything in place for dinner, he knocked on Ib and Mary's bedroom door and called them out to eat.

Together, the three of them talked and ate happily. They talked about how their day went, giving Garry the opportunity to vent to his sisters about his busy work day. Ib and Mary listened intently, giving him a few comments every now and then. Garry smiled. Talking with his sisters definitely made him feel better. After they finished eating, Garry took the dishes from breakfast and dinner and placed them into the dishwasher. Ib and Mary then ran off into the living room to play together while Garry returned to his bedroom to finish his classwork.

At around eight o'clock, Garry took a moment to take a break from his homework as he stepped out of his room and told his sisters to get ready for bed. He could hear both girls grumble from the living room, but smiled as they told him they just had to clean up their toys. Garry returned to his laptop and a few minutes later, listened to his sisters' footsteps as they walked into their room and then closed the door. He continued working on his schoolwork for a while longer, until he heard someone knock gently on his open door.

"Garry, can you tuck us in bed?" Ib asked in a quiet voice.

"Of course, just give me one second," he said. Ib gave no verbal response, and instead walked up to stand beside Garry's chair to watch as he worked.

"Is this your homework?" she asked. Garry nodded.

"It looks hard," Ib commented. Garry nodded again.

"Garry, why do you work so hard?" Ib asked. Garry finally looked away from his laptop to stare at his little sister. She simply looked at him with her big, bright red eyes, waiting for an answer.

"What do you mean, Ib?" he asked.

"Well, you wake Mary and I up every morning, get us ready for school, and then you go to work all day, and then you come home and work on your homework, and then you make us dinner, tuck Mary and I in bed, and you keep working on homework," Ib explained, "and then you get up and do it all over again. Why do you work so hard?"

Garry thought for a moment. Had his nine-year-old sister really noticed all the work he did? He didn't know how to respond.

"I guess I just do it all for you and Mary," he replied. "I want to make sure that we all have enough money for essentials like food, a house, and clothes, and I have to make sure that I do good on my schoolwork so that I can graduate and get an even better job so that I can earn more money." Ib was silent for a moment as she nodded.

"Garry, if Mom and Dad hadn't died, would you still have to work this hard for us?" Garry thought that his heart skipped a beat. Their parents had been killed in a car crash over a year ago. Since then, he had had to change his entire life around. He had to drop out of the college he had been attending so that he could get a full time job at the local cafe. However, he knew that he still needed a college education, so he enrolled in online courses. Garry had also become Ib and Mary's legal guardian, since he was eighteen (a legal adult) when they died, and because he was their older brother. All of their other family members - like their grandparents, aunts, and uncles - all lived too far away and couldn't drop everything just to take care of two little girls while their older brother went to college. Sure, they did what they could by sending them extra money, and Garry really appreciated their help. However, now that he thought about it, if their parents hadn't died, then Garry could have continued going to college, and Ib and Mary would have been taken care of by their mom and dad. Everything would be normal. Garry sighed.

"Yeah, I guess if they hadn't died, then I guess I wouldn't have to work this hard for you two," Garry admitted.

"Are we a burden to you, Garry?" Ib asked quietly.

"Now why would you think that?!" Garry exclaimed suddenly. Ib slightly jumped at his sudden shouting.

"Well, if me and Mary weren't here, and Mom and Dad had still died, then you would just have to take care of yourself," Ib explained. "We're just a burden for you."

"Ib, don't _ever_ think like that," Garry told her. He then pulled his sister in close to him and gently rubbed her back. "You and Mary are _not_ burdens. I love you both, and even though all this work can be kind of stressful and overwhelming at times, I would never stop working if it meant that I couldn't be here for you guys." Ib was quiet for a moment. Garry then felt her small arms wrap tightly around his neck and shoulders as she returned the hug.

"I love you too, Garry," she said quietly. "You're the best big brother ever, and I know that Mary thinks so too." Garry smiled.

"You and Mary are the coolest little sisters that I could ever ask for," he said. Ib giggled a little. As the two separated from their hug, Garry lovingly tousled Ib's hair and then stood up.

"C'mon, let's get you two to bed." Ib nodded and took his hand as she followed him into her room. Mary looked up from a book she was reading when they walked in and then immediately dropped it as she ran from her bed to hug Garry. Garry laughed as he hugged her back.

"I love you, Mary," he said. Mary looked up at him and smiled brightly.

"I love you too, Garry!" she said happily. Garry smiled and then brought his two sisters over to their beds.

"Now what story do you want me to read tonight?"

 **Hi! So, here's another Ib fanfic! (Don't worry, I'm still working on The New Painting. I just wanted to publish this too.) Anyways, thanks for reading, and please review!**


	2. Beach Day

"Are we there yet?" Mary whined from the back seat. Garry sighed, but kept his eyes on the road in front of him.

"No, but we should be there soon," Garry replied.

"But I'm so _bored_!" Mary groaned.

"Then why don't you clean up a few of your toys back there?" he suggested. Since the roads were clear, Garry decided to take a chance and glance back at his little sisters through the rearview mirror. Ib was sitting behind the passenger's seat, quietly reading a book. All of her toys were neatly packed in her backpack. Mary was sitting next to Ib, directly behind Garry. She had her dolls, coloring books, and reading books all scattered over her seat and on the floor. Mary glared at Garry through the mirror and then rolled her eyes as she began to pick up her things. Garry smiled at her and then refocused his attention to his driving.

After about a half hour, Garry parked the car and looked out at the sandy beach in front of them. He had taken a day off of work so that he could take his sisters to the beach. He thought that they would enjoy a little "fun in the sun".

"We're here!" Garry proclaimed as he unbuckled his seatbelt. Ib and Mary looked up excitedly, and then ripped off their seat belts as they jumped out of the car. Garry stepped out as well, and then walked to the back of his car and opened the trunk. He pulled out three beach chairs, a few sand buckets and shovels, and a large beach bag. Slinging the bag over his shoulder and grabbing his beach chair, he turned to his sisters, who were bouncing up and down with excitement.

"Do you think you guys could help me carry some stuff?" he asked. They both nodded as they flung their backpacks over their shoulders. Ib grabbed her beach chair and the buckets, while Mary grabbed her chair and the shovels. After closing the trunk and locking his car doors, Garry led them through the parking lot and onto the beach.

Moments later, the three of them found a nice, open area a few feet away from the water. They set their things down in the sand, and then Garry pulled out a bottle of sunblock.

"Do we have to have sunblock on?" Mary whined.

"Yeah, I don't like it either," Ib agreed. "It's really cold when you spray it on."

"Oh, come on," Garry rolled his eyes. "It's fine! And besides, I'm pretty sure sunburn feels worse than cold sunblock." To be honest, Garry hated the cold spray of sunblock too, but he knew that he had to be the good older brother and simply suck it up for his sisters. When he saw that they still had no interest in the sunblock, Garry removed the cap, slipped off his green tank top, and began to spray himself. And man, was it cold! He shivered as a small breeze blew by and elevated the feeling of cold from the still-wet sunblock.

"See, I did it. It's not so bad. Now can I spray sunblock on you two?" Garry asked. Ib and Mary exchanged a look and finally nodded. The two girls then slipped out of their cover-up dresses, revealing their two-piece bathing suits, and stepped forward to let Garry spray them down.

When that was all done, Ib and Mary immediately ran off towards the water. Garry laughed to himself as he watched his sisters splash and play together. He sat down and then reached into his beach bag. Pulling out his sketchbook and a pencil, he began to sketch his sisters as they played, which was very difficult because they never stayed in one place for too long. So instead, he did several quick sketches of what they were doing for a moment, and then started a new doodle when they moved. This made for an interesting picture, as it looked like many people were running around on his paper, or like some sort of weird animation that was frozen onto the page. After a while, Ib began to walk out of the water and up towards the beach. However, Garry didn't notice her at first, as he was too busy making a few adjustments to his drawing.

"Garry," Ib said quietly, catching his attention. Then, noticing his sketch, she stepped beside him and peered over his shoulder at the paper.

"What's that?" she asked.

"Oh, I was drawing you and Mary while you were playing," Garry replied. Ib looked closer at the drawing, making sure that she didn't get it wet.

"I like it," she decided. "You're really good at drawing."

"Thanks Ib! I'm glad you think so," Garry smiled as he wrapped his arm around her in a half-hug.

"Oh, I almost forgot," Ib said suddenly. Turning to face Garry, she asked, "Do you think you could come in the water? We wanna play with you."

Garry opened his mouth to say something and then quickly closed it. He was about to say no, that he would join them later and that he'd much rather continue drawing for a little longer. However, as he looked into Ib's pleading red eyes, he just couldn't. So instead, he nodded and put his sketchbook and pencil back in his bag and stood up. Ib smiled, grabbed his hand, and then began to drag him towards the water. When they reached Mary, the young blonde raced towards Garry and grabbed his other hand.

"C'mon Garry! Let's look for shells!" she said excitedly. So, for the next few hours, Ib, Garry, and Mary searched for shells, splashed each other, and swam together. Garry eventually lost track of time and simply enjoyed playing with his sisters. Well, that is until Mary's stomach started to grumble.

"Garry! I'm hungry!" Mary whined as she pulled on her older brother's arm.

"I guess it is around lunch time. And y'know, I'm getting a little hungry too. Why don't we stop and eat the lunches that I packed for us?" he said. Mary and Ib nodded happily in agreement and the three of them walked out onto the beach together.

Reaching into the beach bag, Garry pulled out three sets of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, chips, bananas, and water bottles. With their lunches in hand, they all sat down in their beach chairs and began to eat. The rest of the day seemed to fly by. After lunch, Garry, Ib, and Mary built sand castles together, and later, when Garry accidentally fell asleep in his beach chair, Ib and Mary buried his feet and most of his legs in the sand. When he finally woke up, Garry found that his legs were covered in sand, the sun was starting to set, and that Ib and Mary had also fallen asleep in their beach chairs beside him.

After packing away their things, Garry gently shook his sisters awake and then helped them as they groggily stumbled back to the car. He then shoved all of their things in the trunk and hopped into the driver's seat. Ib and Mary climbed into the back seat, buckled up, and leaned against each other as they began to fall asleep again. Garry couldn't help but smile a little at the sight. They both looked so calm and peaceful.

The car was completely silent as he pulled out of the parking lot and onto the road. He had only been driving for a few minutes when he suddenly heard Ib mumble something.

"What was that, Ib?" he asked.

"Thanks for taking us to the beach, Garry," she repeated. Looking into the rearview mirror, Garry saw Ib smile tiredly to him while Mary snored softly beside her. Garry smiled back and then refocused his attention on the road.

"No problem, Ib."

 **Here's just a sweet little story for you guys! I actually got the idea for this when I was at the beach last week. So I thought it would be cute if Garry took Ib and Mary to the beach too! Anyways, thanks for reading and reviews are always appreciated!**


	3. It's Okay To Cry

**Okay, I think because of this story, I'm going to change the rating from K to K+ because of the mention of death in this chapter. There's no blood or anything, just a car crash. Okay, I'm going to stop now and let you read. Enjoy!**

* * *

Garry walked into his bedroom and closed the door behind him. He sighed as he leaned his head against the door. It had been another long day.

As Garry slipped out of his shirt and began to change into his pajamas, the day's events replayed themselves in his head. As usual, he had to get his sisters ready for school, and then go to work. After work, he came home, made sure that Ib and Mary were doing their homework, and then secluded himself in his room and worked on his classwork. Around five o'clock, Garry had to make dinner. When they finished dinner, Garry had planned to continue his schoolwork. However, Ib and Mary had been crying in their room again. As he had done for the past few months, Garry would sit on one of their beds with the two girls and do his best to comfort them. He held them, he let them cry on him, he tried to entertain and play games with them. But nothing ever worked. Garry couldn't blame them though. They had just lost their parents less than three months ago.

Garry flopped down on his bed, pulled up his covers, and closed his eyes. He just wanted to sleep. Unfortunately, he wasn't allowed to rest for long when he heard his door creak open. He listened to a pair of small feet as they walked across his room to stand in front of him. Suddenly, he felt a small poke on his shoulder.

"Garry, are you awake?" Mary whispered. Garry opened his eyes. Mary looked down at him with watery blue eyes and sniffled.

"What's wrong, Mary?" he asked.

"I can't sleep," she muttered. "Can I lay in your bed for a while?"

"Fine, but only for a few minutes," Garry replied. He then scooted over in his bed to make room for Mary. Mary crawled in and Garry wrapped his arms around her as she placed her head comfortably underneath his chin. Closing his eyes again, Garry felt like he could finally rest a little. Unfortunately, that didn't last too long either.

After about a half hour, another pair of footsteps entered the room. Looking up, Garry saw Ib walk in, carrying one of her favorite stuffed rabbits.

"What's wrong, Ib?" he whispered.

"I had a nightmare," she mumbled.

"You had a nightmare, Ib?" Mary asked. Garry looked down at her. He had not realized that Mary was still awake. Sitting up, Garry and Mary made room for Ib to sit on the bed.

"Do you want to tell us what your nightmare was about?" Garry asked. Ib was quiet for a moment and then nodded. She sniffled and Garry could see tears in her eyes.

"I had a nightmare about Mom and Dad's car crash," she mumbled. "I imagined that I was there by the side of the road when they drove by. And then… it happened." Tears flowed down Ib's cheeks like silent waterfalls. Garry pulled her close and Mary joined in, taking her sister's hands. Ib and Mary then began to cry, their shoulders shaking heavily. Garry frowned as he could only imagine what his sister had seen in her dream.

In his mind, he could picture their parents' car smashed into a large tree, smoke floating up from the hood. He could imagine the air bags bulging out from the steering wheel and other parts of the car as they tried and failed to save the lives of a middle-aged man and woman. He could see the skid marks on the road behind them, as their car had swerved in order to dodge the drunk driver that had come speeding out of nowhere. He could hear the sirens as police cars and ambulances drove up only to find that the couple was dead. Garry shook his head to erase the images from his mind. _No more._

"Garry, are you okay?" Mary asked, bringing him out of his thoughts. Before he could answer, however, Ib lifted her hand and placed it on his cheek.

"You're crying," she stated simply as her own tears continued to fall. As Ib removed her hand, Garry lifted his own. His cheek was wet and his vision was beginning to get blurry. _When did he start crying?_

Now that he thought about it, Garry couldn't recall a time since his parents' deaths that he had spent crying. Sure, he was definitely sad and upset about it, and he deeply missed his parents. But, he had just been too busy to cry. After their death, he had to comfort Ib and Mary and make sure that they were all right. Then he had to help make plans for the funeral, get a full-time job, drop out of college and start online courses, become Ib and Mary's legal guardian, and then try to move on with his life. He hadn't had time to cry, and even when he did, he didn't want to. He wanted to appear strong for his sisters, to be their rock in times of sadness.

"I-I'm fine," he replied. Surprisingly, he could hear his voice waver as he spoke, and more tears began to fall. He sighed. "I-I don't want to lie to you. But… I don't really want to tell you the truth either." He paused as he looked down at his sisters. They looked at him curiously, unsure by what he meant.

"Just be honest with us," Mary said. "We won't judge you. Just tell us what's wrong." Garry couldn't help but smile a little at her words. Turning to Ib, she simply nodded in agreement. Both girls waited patiently for his response.

"I guess… I guess I just miss Mom and Dad. That's all," Garry replied. Suddenly, Ib and Mary jumped on him, wrapping their arms around him in a hug. The two girls both resumed their crying and for a moment, Garry almost regretted his words. He hadn't wanted to make them feel worse.

"We miss Mom and Dad too," Mary mumbled shakily as she cried.

"It's okay, Garry," Ib added tearfully. "We're always here for you."

And just like that, it felt like a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He didn't have to hold in his tears. His sisters didn't care if they saw him cry. They didn't think any different about him. They loved him just the same. Garry smiled as he cried silently. He held Ib and Mary close. His sisters were the best!

After who knows how long, Garry realized that all three of them had layed down on his bed, and that Ib and Mary had fallen asleep in his arms. As he looked down at them, Garry smiled. He could wake them up and have them go back to their own beds, but he just didn't have the heart to do so. They just looked so happy and peaceful. Smiling, Garry closed his eyes. Finally, they would all get some well-deserved rest.

 **Okay, so I actually felt like crying a little while writing this, so I'm sorry if I made you cry. I'll try to post a happier chapter as soon as I can, but until then, have a box of tissues! Thanks for reading and reviews are always appreciated!**


	4. Big Brother

Ten-year-old Garry sat in the hallway of a large hospital, swinging his legs beneath his chair. As he wrapped a strand of his curly, lavender hair around his index finger, he realized that he was long overdue for a haircut. Garry smiled as he let the strand of hair uncurl from around his finger. He liked it long, and he thought it looked cool when he let his bangs cover his left eye.

The boy then turned to his right and saw a white door only a few feet away. His parents were in there, and they had been there for about two hours now. Garry wondered how his mom was doing. He knew that she was giving birth to his new siblings, and he couldn't help but worry a little.

 _My new siblings,_ Garry thought excitedly. Soon, he was going to be the older brother to a pair of twins. He wasn't sure if they were going to be both boys, girls, or one of each, but Garry didn't care. He just couldn't wait to be a big brother!

Garry then turned his attention to a clock that hung on the wall in front of him. According to the clock, he had been sitting in the hallway for about twenty minutes now. Twenty minutes since his babysitter had dropped him off at the hospital, saying that she had to leave because her boyfriend was apparently more important than the ten-year-old boy that she was supposed to babysit. Garry frowned and crossed his arms.

 _I hope Mom and Dad can find a new babysitter soon,_ Garry thought to himself.

Suddenly, as if on cue, the door to his parents' hospital room swung open. His dad walked out, looking tired and disheveled, but he still managed to smile when his son ran into his arms.

"Dad! How's Mom? How are my new siblings? Are they boys or girls?" Garry rambled. His father chuckled.

"Your mother is doing just fine," he said. Then, looking around, Garry's dad asked, "Where's your babysitter?"

"Oh, she dropped me off here a while ago and then left 'cause her boyfriend texted her or something," Garry replied. Before his father could respond, Garry eagerly pulled on his hand. "So, can I see the babies yet?"

"Of course." Garry then followed his dad into the room where he saw his mother sitting up in her hospital bed. She looked even more exhausted than her husband, but she too wore a large smile as joyful tears slid down her cheeks. In her arms were two small blankets, and Garry immediately ran over to get a better look.

"Garry, say hello to your new little sisters," his mom said proudly. _Sisters._ He had two little sisters!

Garry looked down at the two newborns. The baby in his mom's right arm had short, fuzzy brown hair and bright red eyes. The baby in his mom's left arm had short, almost non-existent blond hair and bold blue eyes. Both of his new sisters looked at him curiously, as if they were trying to figure out who this new stranger was.

"Garry, we'd like to introduce you to your new sisters," his dad said. Pointing to the red-eyed brunette, he said, "This is Ib," and then motioning to the blonde, "and this is Mary."

"Hi Ib. Hi Mary," Garry said in a quiet voice. He smiled as they gurgled and made adorable baby noises. "So, which one is older?"

"Ib is older by about seven minutes," his mother replied. Garry nodded and then held out his hands towards the two baby girls. Ib looked at him for a moment and then grabbed onto his pinkie finger. Mary gurgled baby words at him and then grabbed his other pinkie. Garry couldn't help but laugh a little.

"It's nice to meet you Ib and Mary," he said happily. "I'm Garry. I'm your older brother."

"And I promise that I'm going to be the best big brother ever."

 **And here we travel back in time to see how Garry met his little sisters! Lots of adorable fluff in here, plus it's kind of a short chapter, but I thought you guys would enjoy it! Anyways, thanks for reading and reviews are always appreciated!**


	5. Bookstore

It was an ordinary Saturday afternoon. Garry walked into a large bookstore, with Ib and Mary not far behind. The two girls looked around at all of the large bookshelves, their eyes scanning the various rows of books. Garry walked towards the young adult section and ran his finger over the titles as he looked for the book that he needed.

"Garry, why are we here again?" Mary asked as she pulled on his coat.

"I thought I told you already, I need a specific book for a book report," he explained.

"Oh, I forgot!" Mary giggled. Garry rolled his eyes and lovingly tousled his sister's hair.

"Hey, why don't you and Ib go look around for a book too," Garry suggested. "I'll buy one for you both if you find a book that you like." Mary nodded eagerly. She grabbed Ib, who was already looking at a row of books, and then pulled her towards another aisle. Garry laughed a little and then continued his search.

After a while, Garry finally found the book that he needed. It was some sort of biography about an artist named Weiss Guertena. Garry thought that he had heard the name somewhere - if he could remember correctly, there was an art gallery nearby all about him - but he had never really taken the time to ever look up the obscure artist.

"Hey Garry! Look! I found a book that I want!" Mary exclaimed as she suddenly ran towards him from behind another bookshelf. She handed the book that she was carrying to Garry. He opened the book and flipped through the pages. Each page had colorful pictures of various paintings with a small excerpt about the painting.

"You want this one?" Garry asked. Mary nodded.

"I like the pictures in it!" she said.

"Alright then. Now, where's Ib?"

"Oh, she's over here." Mary then pulled Garry over to another area of books. Looking at the sign above them, Garry frowned. They were in the "romance" section; definitely not the type of books that a nine-year-old should be reading. When they found Ib, she was reading out loud from the book in her hands.

"Uh, something by the… um, I… uh… my finger over her beautiful… um…" Ib mumbled to herself," "with her… something, she…" Garry could feel his entire face burn bright red. He quickly dashed over and snatched the book out Ib's hands. He then shoved it back into the bookshelf, grabbed Ib's and Mary's hands, and dragged them over to the children's section.

"Why'd you do that, Garry?" Ib asked. "I was reading that."

"Don't read this kind of stuff until you're older," Garry told her. She still looked rather confused but then walked off towards some other books. Mary eagerly followed her and the two girls looked through the books while Garry let out a sigh of relief. In his opinion, he didn't think that either of his sisters should read those types of books, no matter how old they were.

"Garry, I found a book," Ib said, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"What book did you find?" he asked as he joined Ib and Mary. Ib held out a picture book full of photos of bunnies. Garry smiled and nodded approvingly.

"Yeah, you can get that book," he said. "It's much more appropriate for you." Ib and Mary smiled at him happily. He smiled back and then led them to the check-out line, where he paid for the books, and then left the bookstore.

Stepping out into the bright, afternoon sun, Garry looked down at his watch. It was only a little after two o'clock. Garry sighed. He didn't want to go home just yet. They still had all day to hang out, and besides, his book report wasn't due for another week and a half. A little procrastination wouldn't hurt, right?

"Hey, do you two want to stop for a snack before we head home?" Garry asked with a smile. "I was thinking macaroons."

 **Just a cute little story. Sorry it's so short though, I was just kind of bored and I wrote this. Honestly, the main reason why I wrote this was because I wanted to write something where Ib reads the dirty book like in the game and how Garry would react to it. (That's probably one of my favorite parts in the game, just because it's so funny!) And yes, I included a little mention about Guertena in here too. I might have another story later on where Guertena is mentioned again, but I'm not sure. Anyways, thanks for reading and reviews are always appreciated!**


	6. Garry The Hero

"Hello, this is Principal Reddize from Kouri Elementary School. I regret to inform you that Mary Rose has received a detention for this Saturday because she started a fight with another student during lunch today. The detention is from eight to nine in the morning. Thank you, and have a nice day."

Garry felt like everything around him had stopped. He had just finished work and was sitting in his car when he realized that someone had left him a voicemail. _Mary_ got _detention_?! For _starting_ a _fight_?! Garry was furious. He immediately put down his phone, started the engine, and drove off. When he got home, he slammed the front door open and marched right towards his sisters' bedroom.

"Mary! I need to talk to you!" he demanded as he swung the door open. Ib and Mary - who were both sitting together on one of their beds - looked towards him with wide eyes. Their expressions somewhat reminded him of a "deer in the headlights" look.

"I got a call from your principal," Garry said, folding his arms over his chest. "He said that you got a _detention_ for starting a fight! Explain to me why you decided to start a fight with another student!" For a moment, Mary simply sat there, wide-eyed and speechless. Suddenly, she broke into tears as she sobbed heavily. Ib looked from Mary to Garry. The small brunette then stood up and stood in between her older brother and her twin sister.

"It's not Mary's fault!" Ib said. "She was just helping me. This one boy from our class was being mean to me, and she tried to tell him off, and when he wouldn't listen, Mary punched him in the arm. The teacher only thought that Mary had started the fight because she was the first one to start hitting." Garry stood there for a moment as he silently stared at Ib.

"And you're telling me the truth?" he asked. Ib and Mary both nodded. Garry looked down at Mary. She was still sobbing and sniffling, her shoulders shaking as she looked up at him fearfully. Garry sighed and sat down on the bed next to her.

 _Great. My little outburst just probably earned me the title of "Worst Older Brother Ever",_ Garry thought to himself.

"Mary, I am _really_ sorry for yelling like that," he said. "It's just that when I heard that you got detention, I got really upset because I never thought that you would get into a fight. I never should have assumed that you wouldn't have a good reason for fighting someone else. And I never should have doubted that you're a good girl. I'm _really_ sorry that I raised my voice like that. Could you ever forgive me?" Mary didn't even hesitate. She immediately nodded and draped her arms over Garry's shoulders as she held onto him tightly. She continued to cry, so Garry held her close and did his best to comfort her. Soon, Ib joined in the hug, wrapping her arms around Garry and Mary. For the next few minutes, they all just sat like that while Mary calmed herself down.

"I-it's okay, Garry," Mary sniffled when she had finally stopped crying. "I'm sorry that I got detention."

"It's okay," Garry told her. "You were just trying to help Ib. Now, what exactly happened? What was this boy doing?"

"After Ib took her lunch tray to the lunch ladies, this kid tripped her. And then when I came and told him that that wasn't nice, he wouldn't listen to me, so I punched him in the arm and then he tried to punch me back but I didn't get hurt," Mary explained.

"Who is this kid?" Garry asked.

"His name is Manny Kinnhed," Ib replied. "He's been picking on me for a while now, and it's only because he thinks I'm weird and quiet. Plus he says my red eyes are creepy. He also picks on Mary too, but not as much."

"He's been picking on you two for 'a while now', and you never tried to tell me?!" Garry exclaimed. Ib and Mary guiltily shook their heads. Garry frowned. However, he was not upset with Ib or Mary. He was angry because some kid thought it was okay to mess with _his_ little sisters!

"I'm going to have to have a talk with this Manny," Garry grumbled under his breath.

"So, um, am I in trouble?" Mary asked, changing the topic.

"No, you're not in trouble. I think that getting detention will be punishment enough," he said. "Manny is the one that's going to be in trouble!"

* * *

That Saturday, Garry parked his car right in front of Kouri Elementary School. As he stepped out of his car, he could see Mary walking out of the office door, with a young boy walking casually behind her. The boy had pale skin, bleach-blond hair that appeared almost white, black eyes, and he wore a black shirt with some rock band on the front, a pair of red basketball shorts, and red sneakers with black socks. The boy had his hands stuffed in his pockets, and he looked completely indifferent, as if he hadn't just spent an hour in detention.

As soon as Mary saw Garry, she ran up to him and hugged him. He hugged her back and then turned his attention to the boy.

"Are you Manny Kinnhed?" Garry asked, glaring down at him.

"Yeah, and who are you?" he shot back.

" _I_ am Garry, Ib and Mary's older brother," Garry replied. "I've heard that you've been picking on my sisters. That is _not_ okay!"

"Yeah, and what are you gonna do about it?" Manny said as he rolled his eyes.

If he had been in a cartoon, Garry was sure that he would have steam blowing out of his ears. This kid was infuriating! Suddenly, Garry grabbed ahold of the collar on Manny's shirt and lifted the boy off of his feet. He held him so that their noses were only inches away from each other as Garry glared at the young bully.

"Oh, I can't do anything right now, but trust me; if you hurt Ib or Mary ever again, I _will_ find you! You will not touch them, go near them, tease them, or speak to them unless it is to apologize! You do _not_ mess with my little sisters!" Garry said through gritted teeth. Manny's eyes were wide as he simply nodded in response. Garry then dropped Manny on the ground and watched as he scrambled to stand up.

"I'm sorry!" he shouted as he ran off down the road. Manny continued running past several houses until he ran right into a small, beige colored house with a red roof. Garry made a mental note to remember that house. Just in case.

"That. Was. So. Cool!" Mary exclaimed. Garry turned around and saw Mary staring at him. She had a huge smile on her face and she was jumping up and down excitedly.

"That was awesome! It looked like Manny was gonna pee his pants!" Mary laughed. "You just scared off one of the toughest kids in school!"

Garry laughed a little as Mary went on and on about how cool he was for scaring off Manny. When they got home, Mary excitedly told Ib all about it. Ib then joined Mary in fangirling as she giggled over the idea that Manny had run away after Garry had threatened him. Garry simply chuckled to himself as he listened. To him, he had simply done his part to protect his little sisters. And besides, Manny was just some fourth grade kid. It wasn't like Garry couldn't take him down in a fight. But he knew that to Ib and Mary, it was as if Garry had just taken down Godzilla with his bare hands. To them, he was their hero. And Garry couldn't help but feel honored.

 **This was sort of a combination of two ideas. The one idea came from my own weird mind, where Mary gets detention for starting a fight with someone who was bullying Ib. The other idea for this story came from Sephiroth Cresent-Valentine, who gave me the great idea that Garry could terrify a kid who was bullying his precious little sisters. Thanks so much for the idea! :D Also, if you weren't sure, the principal's name should be pronounced like "Red Eyes", that creepy doll painting, and the bully's name is supposed to be like "Mannequin Head". It literally took me forever to come up with those names, so I hope you like them. :) Anways, thanks for reading and reviews are always appreciated!**


	7. Sick Day

Garry woke up one night to the sound of coughing and spitting. As he climbed out of bed, he walked down the hallway towards the bathroom. Garry gasped as he saw Mary kneeling in front of the toilet and wiping her mouth with a piece of toilet paper. She then threw the toilet paper into the toilet and flushed. She looked really pale.

"Mary, are you okay?" Garry asked as he immediately knelt down beside her. Mary gave no response as she simply leaned on him, prompting Garry to wrap his arm around her.

"My tummy hurts," she mumbled weakly. "My head hurts a little too, and my nose is stuffy."

"Is there anything else that bothers you?" he asked as he placed his hand on her forehead. Garry frowned. She had a fever.

"My throat hurts a little," Mary replied. "Garry, I don't feel good."

"I know Mary," Garry said. "Now c'mon. We should get you to bed. And you won't be going to school tomorrow." Mary nodded and then looked up at him.

"Can you carry me?" she asked. "I don't feel good enough to walk." Garry was about to say no; Mary was old enough to walk on her own and she was becoming much too big for Garry to carry her. However, as he looked into his sister's pleading blue eyes, he gave in. Placing his right arm underneath Mary's back and head, and his left arm beneath her legs, Garry then lifted both himself and his sister off of the bathroom floor. As he carried Mary into her room, she leaned her head on Garry's chest. He smiled a little.

 _I'm such a pushover,_ Garry thought to himself. _I'm practically defenseless when she makes that face. I think it's her eyes that really get me._

Garry then carefully layed Mary in bed and pulled the blankets over her. Once he knew that she was comfortable, he kissed her on the forehead.

"Get some rest, okay?" he whispered. "Feel better." Mary gave a weak smile and then closed her eyes. Garry then left the room and crawled back into his own bed. Unfortunately, he didn't get very much sleep, as he was too worried about Mary.

When six thirty finally rolled around, Garry called his boss and told her that he couldn't come in today. Afterwards, he walked back to his sisters' room and opened the door. Luckily, Mary was fast asleep.

 _Good. At least she got some rest,_ Garry thought happily. He then walked over to Ib's side of the room and sat on her bed. He pulled her blankets down and Ib groaned in protest.

"Please Ib, can you get up for me?" he pleaded. Ib opened her eyes and looked up at him.

"What's wrong, Garry?" she asked groggily.

"Mary wasn't feeling well last night," Garry explained. "She won't be going to school today, so I'll need you to be quiet when you're getting ready so that she can rest." Ib sat up and nodded. She then looked over towards Mary and frowned.

"I hope she feels better," she mumbled.

"Me too," Garry sighed. "Well, I'll go make you some breakfast." He then stood up, left the room, and walked into the kitchen. Garry then poured two bowls of cereal and began eating. Soon, Ib joined him, and once she was finally ready for school, Garry waved goodbye to her from the front door as she walked to the bus stop.

"Tell Mary that I said 'Get better soon'," Ib called as she walked.

"I will," Garry called back. "See you later!"

"Bye!"

Garry then walked back into the house and jumped a little when he saw Mary standing in the living room holding her blanket and one of her favorite blue dolls.

"Oh, Mary," Garry laughed a little at himself. "I didn't see you there. When did you get up? How are you feeling?"

"I just got up," she mumbled. "And I still feel kinda bad. Was that Ib?"

"Yeah, and she said that she wants you to 'get better soon'," Garry said. Mary smiled a little and then crawled onto the couch. Garry then helped her pull the blanket up and covered her.

"Do you want anything to eat?" he asked.

"Toast please," Mary replied. Garry nodded and then went back to the kitchen. A few minutes later, he returned with a plate of two slices of toast and a glass of water. He then handed them to Mary and sat down on the couch beside her. She thanked him for the food and then began to nibble on the toast. Mary was able to finish off half of a slice when she suddenly put the plate down on the coffee table. She then leaned against Garry's side and pulled the blanket up closer to her chin.

"What's wrong?" Garry asked. "Not hungry anymore?"

"My tummy hurts really bad now," Mary mumbled.

"Do you feel like you're going to throw up?" he asked. Mary nodded weakly and Garry quickly helped her to the bathroom. As she knelt in front of the toilet for several minutes, the feeling eventually passed, and then Garry helped Mary back to the couch.

For the rest of the day, Garry did what he could to help Mary feel better. He fixed her pillow and blanket, played her favorite movie, and helped her whenever she had to go to the bathroom. Finally, around one thirty, Mary fell asleep with her head on Garry's lap. Garry smiled as he looked down at her.

 _Finally, she can get some more rest,_ he thought. However, Garry soon felt his own eyelids begin to close and he too fell asleep. The next thing he knew, he felt a small finger poking him gently on the shoulder. Garry opened his eyes and looked up to see Ib standing in front of him.

"Hmm? Oh, how long have you been home, Ib?" Garry asked as he yawned.

"I've been home for two hours now, I think," she replied.

"Two hours?!" Garry exclaimed. Then, remembering that Mary was still asleep on his lap, he quickly slapped his hands over his mouth. As he looked down at his still-sleeping sister, Garry let out a sigh of relief. He then returned his attention back to Ib.

"Is it five o'clock already?" he asked. Ib nodded. "Alright, then I guess I should get dinner ready." Garry then looked down at Mary and carefully lifted her head up. As he slid to the side, Garry then layed Mary's head back down onto a pillow and stood up. Luckily, she didn't wake up, and Garry and Ib then went into the kitchen to prepare dinner.

* * *

Mary woke up after a while and realized that Garry was no longer on the couch with her. As she sat up and looked around, she could hear voices coming from the kitchen. Mary stood up and slowly made her way into the kitchen, dragging her blanket behind her. When she got to the kitchen, she saw Garry and Ib sitting and eating together. They had been talking, but now they were both silent and looking at Mary.

"Hi Mary!" Ib said happily.

"How are you feeling?" Garry asked.

"I'm feeling a little better," Mary replied. "My tummy doesn't hurt as much."

"Do you want anything to eat? I can make you some more toast if you want," Garry suggested. Mary nodded. Garry stood up and walked over to the counter and pulled out two slices of bread. As he placed them into the toaster, Mary sat down at the table with Ib. Ib smiled to her.

"So, you're feeling better?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'm feeling a little better," Mary replied.

"That's good!" Ib said. Mary smiled a little.

"Here you go." Garry placed the plate of toast down in front of Mary along with a glass of water and then sat back down in his seat. As Garry and Ib continued eating their dinner, Mary began to nibble at her toast. Luckily, she was able to finish it this time without feeling sick. After dinner, Mary sat back down on the couch with Ib and the two watched TV while Garry took care of the dishes and then went back to his room. He said he still had his classwork to do, and Mary suddenly felt bad for taking all of Garry's attention away from his schoolwork. She then followed him back to his room and stood in the doorway as he sat down at his laptop.

"Um, Garry," Mary said quietly.

"What is it Mary? Do you feel sick again?" Garry asked with a hint of worry in his voice.

"No, I'm fine," Mary replied. "I just wanted to say thanks for taking care of me today."

"Oh, it was no problem Mary," Garry said with a smile.

"Also, I'm sorry for taking up your time," Mary added.

"What?! What do you mean by that?" Garry asked, somewhat surprised.

"I forgot that you still had your homework to do, and now you're probably gonna have to work really late to finish it," Mary explained. "I'm sorry." Garry gave no reply at first as he simply smiled at her. He then stood up from his chair and walked over to Mary. As he bent down to her height, he placed his hand on her shoulder and pulled her into a hug.

"You don't need to apologize, Mary," he said. "Taking care of you and Ib is always my first priority. I don't care if I have to stay up all night to finish my homework. I just want you to get better." Mary smiled and hugged Garry back.

"Thanks Garry," she said. "By the way, you make a really comfy pillow." Garry laughed a little and then pulled away. Placing his hand on Mary's forehead, he smiled a little.

"Good. I think your fever's going down," he said. "But I think I'll keep you home from school again tomorrow just in case. Now, why don't you get a bath and then change into a clean set of pajamas. Call me if you need me." Mary nodded and Garry kissed her on the forehead. As Mary left the room, she smiled to herself. Her brother was so nice!

 **Here's another chapter for you guys! (Sorry for the wait, I've been a little busy plus I'm a horrible procrastinator.) I got the idea for this one from the fan-made ending of the game "Sacrifice". I 've never played through "Sacrifice", but I have seen videos of it. Anyways, for those who don't know, in "Sacrifice", Ib sacrifices herself so that Garry and Mary can escape, and when they do, Mary remembers everything, while Garry doesn't and he believes that Mary is his sister. However, that's not really where the inspiration came from. I got the idea from the ending when Mary kept telling Garry that her "tummy hurts" (even though she probably wasn't in any pain and she just wanted to get out of the gallery). Plus, every kid gets sick, so wouldn't it be cute if Ib or Mary got sick and garry took care of them 'cause he's just awesome like that. Anyways, thanks for reading and reviews are always appreciated!**


	8. Girl Stuff

**Warning: This chapter talks about puberty and things of that nature. If you find this topic uncomfortable or awkward, do not read.**

* * *

"Hey, Mary. Can I tell you something?"

"Of course! What is it?"

"First, you have to promise not to tell Garry yet."

"Huh? Why?"

"Just promise, please!"

"Okay, okay. I promise. So what's wrong?"

"I-I got… _it_ today."

"It?"

"Y-yeah."

"Oh! You mean what they told us about in health class?"

"Yes."

"Oh."

Garry couldn't help but eavesdrop as he stood in front of his sisters' closed door. They were whispering about something, but he wasn't sure what they meant by _it_. What did Ib get? How did Mary know what she was referring to? And why did Ib not want him to know about _it_ yet? After a moment, Garry finally decided to slowly open the door and step inside his sisters' room.

Ib and Mary both froze. Their mouths hung slightly open, and their eyes were wide as they stared at Garry. Ib's entire face immediately turned a bright shade of red, as if she was embarrassed by something.

"Um, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to eavesdrop," Garry began as he awkwardly scratched the back of his head. "But, uh, what were you two talking about?"

Mary opened her mouth as if to say something, but then quickly shut it. She looked from Garry to Ib and then back to Garry. Ib remained silent with her lips pursed tightly together. If it was possible, Garry thought that her face had turned into a deeper shade of red.

"What were you two talking about?" Garry repeated.

"I'd rather not tell you," Ib mumbled quietly as she lowered her head and stared at her lap.

"Why? What's wrong?" Garry asked, concerned. What was going on? Why weren't they telling him anything?

"It's…. personal," Ib replied.

"What do you mean by personal?"

"It's…. um…. _girl stuff,_ " Ib muttered cryptically.

"Girl stuff?" Garry still didn't understand. What did she mean by that?

Finally, Ib frowned and looked up at Garry. She seemed frustrated and embarrassed as she hesitated a moment before she shouted four heart-stopping words.

"I GOT MY PERIOD!"

Garry's eyes widened as he froze in place. He thought he was going to faint, but he managed to stay standing as he stared at his little sisters. Ib was as red as a beet, and Mary's eyes were huge as they darted from Ib to Garry and back again. _Her period?_ Ib had gotten her period! Sure, Garry had known that the day would come when his sisters began to go through puberty, and unfortunately, their parents were no longer with them to help the girls through that stage. And since Ib and Mary were now thirteen, Garry should have known that that day was going to be even closer.

The thought of his little sisters growing up terrified him. They would need to buy pads, bras, and fancy dresses for school dances. They were going to go through puberty, get boyfriends, go to high school, graduate, go to college, _leave_.

"D-do you…. uh, um…. need pads or whatever?" Garry asked awkwardly. Ib looked at him for a moment and then nodded slowly.

"Okay, I'll…. uh, take you to the store then," he mumbled sheepishly. Ib nodded again and then she and Mary slowly stood up.

"Did you get…. uh, your period yet, Mary?" Garry asked. Mary blushed a little and shook her head. Garry nodded a little and then led them out of their room. After grabbing his wallet and keys, he walked out of the house with Ib and Mary behind him, and then hopped into his car. As he started the engine, Garry willed himself to relax. These were his _sisters_. He would help them in any way he could with no matter what they were going through, and if that meant that he had to go shopping for pads and other girly things, then he would do just that. He wouldn't be a wimp with these sorts of things. He would be the responsible older brother and take care of his little sisters.

"Hey, Ib, Mary," Garry said after driving in silence for a few minutes, "I'm sorry for acting so awkward there. I know this must be really weird for you, Ib, so I just want to help in any way I can."

As he looked in the rearview mirror, Garry could see Ib and Mary nod. He knew that this was an awkward topic for them, and he couldn't blame them for being so quiet about it. Heck, even he still felt a little awkward about the whole thing. But as he returned his focus on the road, Garry made a silent promise to himself that he would do anything for his sisters as they grew up. _No matter what._

 **This was really fun to write! (Why do I love to put these three in awkward situations?) Also, I'm sorry for taking so long to update. I have a few more ideas for this still, but sometimes I just can't figure out how I want to write them. But, I'll continue to try and move past my writer's block so that I can update this series for you guys. Also, I've gotten a few suggestions from a few of you (don't worry, I'll write those too), and if you have any other ideas, I'd love to hear them! Anyways, that's all for now! Thanks for reading and reviews are always appreciated!**


	9. Back-to-School Shopping

"Ib, Mary, c'mon!" Garry called as he waited by the front door of their house. He swung his keys around his finger impatiently as he glanced at his watch. It was already two o'clock in the afternoon. He had hoped to leave the house about a half hour ago. However, Ib and Mary got out of bed late, and they both took a really long time in the shower. Seriously, what was with girls and taking long showers? Garry simply shook his head. He would probably never understand.

"C'mon! We have a lot of back-to-school shopping to do!" he called again.

"We're coming!" Mary called back. Moments later, Ib and Mary stepped out of their room. Garry sighed and opened the door for them.

"What took you two so long?" he asked as he closed and locked the door behind them.

"We both had to get showers and get dressed," Mary replied with a shrug.

"So what do we need to buy?" Ib asked as they all hopped into Garry's car.

"Well, let me check the list your school mailed us," Garry said as he pulled out a folded piece of paper from his pocket. "This says that you need backpacks, planners, binders, pencils, erasers, and notebooks. You'll both probably need new shoes and maybe a new outfit for the first day too."

"Yay! Shopping!" Mary squealed excitedly. Ib giggled happily beside her, and Garry started up the car's engine. He then pulled out of the driveway and drove off towards the mall.

"Hey, do you two still have your backpacks from last year?" he asked as he drove.

"Yeah," Mary replied. "Why?"

"Well, I was thinking that maybe you two could use your old backpacks instead of buying new ones," Garry explained. "Your old ones are still in really good shape. Plus, even with the shopping money that Grandma and Grandpa sent us, we might not have enough money for new backpacks."

"Oh, okay," Mary said. She sounded a little disappointed by this, but she soon put on a smile. "Can we get some stickers to put on our backpacks though? That way, they'll _look_ new, even though they're not."

"Yeah! I like that idea!" Ib added.

"Of course! That's a great idea, Mary!" Garry said. He smiled a little. He was glad that Ib and Mary understood their situation with money (it's not like a full-time job at the local cafe made much money, but it was enough to help them get by), and he was glad that they were able to make the best out of their situation. He was also glad that both of their parents had good jobs before they died, which helped a lot when Garry had to pay the bills every month.

When they got to the mall, Ib and Mary dragged Garry into all of their favorite clothing stores, trying on outfits and constantly asking Garry for his opinion. Honestly, Garry thought his sisters looked adorable in anything, which ended up making the decision-making process even harder. Eventually, they both found nice outfits and a pair of shoes for the first day of school. Ib picked out a white short-sleeve blouse with a pink vest, a red skirt, and red flats that had cute little bows on the top. Mary chose a light green polo with a blue bow, a dark blue skirt, black leggings, and a pair of green Converse sneakers.

With their school outfits picked out, Garry then took them to a small office supplies store nearby. Ib and Mary then picked out all of their school supplies as well as cute stickers for their backpacks. By the time that they finished shopping, it was around five thirty, so Garry took them to their favorite pizza place for dinner.

"Tanks fo takeh uh soppin', Gawwy," Mary mumbled as she stuffed a bite of pepperoni pizza into her mouth. Ib and Garry laughed while Mary wiped the pizza grease from her mouth with her arm.

"I think she means, 'Thanks for taking us shopping, Garry'," Ib translated with a giggle.

"You're welcome," Garry chuckled. "So, are you two ready for fourth grade? It's only a few days away." Ib tilted her head from the left to the right and shrugged, indicating that she wasn't too sure. Mary simply shook her head with a look of disgust on her face.

"Not ready yet?" Garry asked.

"Nope! I like the summer!" Mary said as she swallowed her bite of pizza. "We get to sleep in, we don't have homework or tests, and it's nice and warm outside."

"Yeah, I like summer too," Ib agreed.

"Same. But we all have to go back to school anyways," Garry said.

"You too, Garry?" Mary asked. Garry nodded.

"The summer was a nice break for me, but my online college courses start up again in about a week," he explained. Ib and Mary nodded as they each took another bite of pizza.

When they had all finished eating, Garry paid for the food and then followed Ib and Mary back to his car. He drove them all home and then helped them carry in and put away all of their clothes and school supplies. For the rest of the night, Ib and Mary put their new stickers on their backpacks and then joined Garry on the couch to watch TV. They all knew that school was coming up soon, but for the moment, it was nice to just relax and watch cartoons together on the couch.

 **It's that time of year again: back to school time. Ugh. I start this Tuesday. Which means that these chapters won't be coming out as frequently, but I'll try to write and post them when I can. Anyways, this is just a cute little story that I thought you guys would like. So, enjoy! Also, thanks for reading and reviews are always appreciated!**


	10. Feeding Time

"I'm home!" Garry called as he walked into the house.

"Hi Garry!" his mom said from her seat on the floor. "How was school today?"

"Eh, it was alright," Garry shrugged. It was fifth grade; it wasn't like it was anything special. Slipping off his backpack and letting it fall to the floor, Garry sat down beside his mom. Her arms were outstretched, and she was holding two small bottles of formula to the mouths of two little girls. Garry's eight-month-old sisters sat in two small baby chairs, hungrily gulping down the milk that their mother was feeding them. Garry smiled as he watched them. Ib and Mary were adorable!

"How were Ib and Mary today?" Garry asked.

"They were good," his mom replied happily. "They were just playing all day today. They always play so well together!" Garry laughed a little at his sisters. Ib and Mary both looked up at him curiously over the top of their bottles.

"So, any homework?" Garry sighed and nodded.

"Math homework," he mumbled. He hated math. It was his least favorite subject. It was always so boring and tedious.

"Well, if you start now, I'm sure you'll be done with your homework in no time," his mother told him. Suddenly, the phone in the kitchen began to ring.

"Oh, I'm sure that's your dad calling to let us know he's coming home from work," she said. "Garry, can you sit here for a minute and watch your sisters?" Garry nodded. His mom then gently pried the bottles out of Ib and Mary's mouths and then set them on the floor as she stood up to answer the phone. As soon as she was gone, Ib and Mary both started to get fussy, whimpering and crying for their bottles.

"H-hold on! Mom's gonna be right back!" Garry said quickly. However, this didn't seem to help. Picking up the bottles, Garry then popped them back into Ib and Mary's mouths, and the two girls stopped fussing. The happily resumed drinking the milk and Garry smiled. He was feeding his baby sisters!

"Aw! How sweet of you, Garry!" Looking up, Garry saw his mom standing in the doorway between the kitchen and living room. She had a huge smile on her face as she watched him.

"Oh, hold on! Let me grab my camera!"

"No, Mom! You don't have to…!" Garry called, but it was too late. She was already running back into the hallway where their rooms were so that she could grab her camera. His mom returned shortly with her camera in hand.

"Say cheese!" she said as she held up the camera.

"Aw, Mom! No!" Garry whined. He hated having his picture taken, unless it was absolutely necessary.

"Oh, c'mon my little Gar-bear!" she pleaded. Garry felt his cheeks burn. He hated it when his mom called him that.

"If I smile for the picture, will you _never_ call me that again?" he asked.

"Oh, alright," his mom giggled. "Now smile!" Garry did his best to smile as his mom took the picture. When that was finished, she smiled at the photo and then set her camera down on the coffee table.

"Thanks Garry! That was really nice of you to feed your sisters while I was busy," she said. "You're a really good big brother!"

"Thanks," Garry said happily. "But it was nothing though. They were getting fussy and I just thought that I'd help out."

"Well, that was very nice of you, Garry. Now, why don't I take over and you go finish your homework?" Garry nodded and carefully pulled the bottles out of his sisters' mouths. Ib and Mary whimpered a little and grabbed at the bottles.

"It's okay, Mom's gonna feed you two now," he said. Garry then handed the bottles to his mom and stood up. She began to feed them again, but Ib and Mary still seemed unhappy. They pushed the bottles out of their mouths and reached towards Garry.

"Ba! Ba! Bruda!" Mary babbled.

"Ga! Gawwy!" Ib gurgled.

"Aw! That's so adorable!" his mom gushed. "They love you!" Garry smiled and laughed.

"I love you both too!" Garry chuckled. "You two are the cutest little sisters ever! But I'll have to play with you later. I have homework."

"Garry, if you want, why don't you finish feeding them, and then you can do homework afterward," his mom suggested with a smile. Garry quickly agreed and sat down. He took the bottles and began to feed them again. Ib and Mary happily drank the rest of the milk, and when they finished, Garry's mom showed him how to burp them. Garry couldn't help but smile the whole time. It felt so good to help take care of his sisters. Being a big brother was the coolest!

 **This was actually based on my own experience. I have a little brother and sister and they're twins too. When I was really little (I wasn't ten like Garry), my mom was feeding them in their car seats in the living room. She then got up to go into the kitchen for some reason (I don't remember why anymore), and I decided to help out and I started feeding them. Unfortunately, my brother and sister didn't call my name like Ib and Mary did, but my mom did take a picture (we still have the photo). Anyway, this is just a short chapter and adorable fluff, so I hope you like it! Thanks for reading and comments are always appreciated!**


	11. Date

Garry parked his car in the driveway and grabbed his leather shoulder bag. As he stepped out of his car, he hung his bag over his shoulder and locked his car door. Twirling his keys around his index finger, he walked up to the front door and unlocked it. When he stepped inside the house, he saw his younger sister, Ib, sitting on the couch while watching TV. Her head turned as soon as he opened the door and she greeted him with a warm smile.

"Hi Garry!" she said happily.

"Hi Ib! How was school?" Garry asked as he closed the door and walked towards her.

"Pretty good, I guess," she shrugged. "Oh, and I already finished my homework. It wasn't much; just some math and science homework."

"That's good."

"So, how was work?"

"Pretty good! All the kids were able to finish their drawings today, so now I just have to grade all of them," Garry said as he patted the bag still hanging from his shoulder, motioning to the stacks of children's drawings that he had with him.

"How many classes do you have?" Ib asked. "Is it a lot?" Garry nodded.

"I have fifteen classes in total, ranging from kindergarten to sixth grade," he explained. "I don't mind having so many classes though. I'm just glad that I finally became an art teacher!"

"Yeah, I bet you're a great art teacher!" Ib said with a smile. "I just wish Mary and I could've had you as a teacher." Garry laughed a little as he ruffled his sister's hair.

"Well, it would've been fun to be your art teacher, but I teach elementary school students. You and Mary are in junior high school now," he said. "Speaking of Mary; where is she?"

"Oh, she's in our room," Ib replied. "She's been talking to some guy on the phone ever since she finished her homework."

"Guy? What guy?" Garry asked.

"Some guy from her math class, I think. I don't know him personally, but Mary's told me a little about him. She says his name is Fletcher Mann, and I think she has a crush on him."

"Mary has a… crush?" Garry muttered with a frown. Ib nodded. He wasn't sure why, but he didn't really like the sound of that. Silently, he walked out of the living room and up to Ib and Mary's bedroom. The door was closed, but he could still hear Mary on the other side.

"I know, I hate math! Ha ha!... Huh? No, I don't think I'm busy this weekend…. Yeah, that sounds fun! Which movie?... Yeah, that one looks really good!... Ha ha! I love that part in the commercial!... Oh, well, I'll have to ask my brother if I can go… So, how are we gonna get there? Could either of your parents take us? Or I'm sure that my brother could. He's cool like that… Yeah, that sounds good. I'll just have to ask him. He should be home any minute now…" Finally, Garry knocked gently on the door, interrupting Mary's conversation. "Oh, I think he's home. Hold on one sec, Fletcher." Moments later, the door opened and Mary smiled up at him.

"Hi Garry!" she said happily as she hugged him.

"Hi Mary. So, who were you talking to?" Garry asked.

"Oh, uh, just a friend from school," Mary replied as her cheeks turned a light shade of pink. "Oh, and are we busy this weekend? Like, tomorrow?"

"No, we're not really doing anything. I just have to grade some papers this weekend," he said.

"Well, do you think I could go to the movies with my friend tomorrow? And would it be okay if you drove us there and then picked us up later?" Garry frowned a little. This sounded like a _date_.

"I don't know. Who's this _friend_ of your's?" he asked.

"Oh, he's just a friend from math class," Mary said. "His name is Fletcher. So can I go to the movies with him?"

"You want to go to the movies _alone_ with a _boy_?" Garry asked.

"Yes!" Mary sighed as she rolled her eyes. " _Please!_ "

"I don't know," Garry said.

"C'mon, _please!_ " Mary begged. Then, lowering her voice, she added, "I really like this guy. Please! I really wanna hang out with him."

"So, you want to go on a _date_ with him," Garry stated.

"Ugh, don't be weird about it!" Mary exclaimed as her cheeks turned a deeper shade of pink. "So, can I go to the movies with him or not?!"

Garry sighed. He didn't like the idea of his little sister going on a date. She was still young! She was only fourteen! But wait. Now that he thought about it, he had been about fourteen when he first starting having crushes. And he went on his first date when he was fifteen. So, if he had been allowed to date at that age, why wasn't he letting Mary do the same? Maybe, just _maybe_ , it was because Garry hated the idea of his sisters growing up. Or maybe he was just being overly protective. Or maybe he was just being irrational. Whatever the reason, Garry knew that he needed to allow Mary to go to the movies with this guy.

"Alright fine," he said. "And I can drop you guys off at the movies, and I'll even give you some money for some candy. Just take your phone with you so you can let me know when to pick you guys up when the movie ends."

"Yay! Thanks so much, Garry!" Mary squealed as she hugged him. She then turned around, hopped back onto her bed, and grabbed her phone. With a huge smile, she told Fletcher that she was allowed to go to the movies with him. As he turned around, Garry closed the door to give Mary some privacy while she continued her conversation.

 _This "Fletcher" guy better treat Mary well,_ Garry thought as he walked into his room, dropping his bag onto the floor beside his desk. _If he doesn't, he can expect a world of pain! No one hurts either of my little sisters!_

* * *

The next day, Mary gave Fletcher's address to Garry. When he pulled his car into Fletcher's driveway, Garry watched as the young boy came walking out of the house. Fletcher had short black hair and black eyes. He wore a dark gray tee-shirt and a pair of cargo shorts with black sneakers. Mary waved eagerly from her seat in the back of the car.

"Hi Fletcher!" she called as she rolled down the window.

"Hi Mary!" Fletcher said with a smile. The boy then opened the car door and slid into the seat next to Mary. After he buckled in his seat belt, Fletcher smiled at Garry.

"So, are you Mary's brother?" he asked politely.

"Yes," Garry said simply as he turned around in his seat. "My name is Garry. And you're Fletcher?"

"Yeah. It's nice to meet you," Fletcher said.

"It's nice to meet you too." Garry then took one last second to look at Fletcher before turning around so that he could start up the car.

 _So far, he doesn't seem_ _too_ _bad,_ Garry thought as he backed his car out of the driveway.

For a while as he drove, Fletcher and Mary talked to themselves, mostly about school, their friends, or about the movie. Eventually, the topic changed to art, and Fletcher admitted that he liked to draw as well.

"Oh, I've never seen you draw!" Mary exclaimed. "What kind of stuff do you draw?"

"It's nothing special. Sometimes I like to go with my dad when he goes fishing and I'll draw the lake or even the different fish that he catches," Fletcher explained.

"That's so cool! You'll have to show me some of your drawings some time!" Mary said excitedly. "My brother, sister, and I all like to draw too, but Garry's the best! He's even an art teacher!"

"Really? You're an art teacher?! That's pretty cool!" Fletcher said as he looked up at Garry.

"Uh, thanks," Garry said. "I teach at Kouri Elementary School. This is my second year teaching."

"That's really neat!" Fletcher said. Garry couldn't help but smile a little at the compliment.

Soon, they all arrived at the movie theater. Garry pulled up to the entrance so that Mary and Fletcher could get out. He then handed Mary some money for their tickets and for some candy and soda.

"Don't forget to call me when it's over, okay?" he reminded them.

"I know," Mary said with a nod. "Thanks for taking us, Garry!"

"Yeah, thanks Garry!" Fletcher added.

"You're welcome. I'll see you later," Garry said. "And Fletcher?"

"Yes?"

"Remember to keep your hands to yourself." Garry watched happily as both Mary and Fletcher's faces turned bright red. Mary glared at Garry while Fletcher simply nodded as fast as he could. Then, before Garry could say anything else, Mary grabbed Fletcher's hand and dragged him through the doors of the theater. Garry sat there for a moment, laughing. Their reactions were priceless! Finally, he drove off and headed home.

 _Not a bad kid. He seems pretty nice. But he better take my reminder seriously, or there is going to be some serious trouble!_

 **This idea has been recommended to me by a few people, but it was first recommended by Sephiroth Cresent-Valentine. Thanks for the idea! Also, here you get to see what Garry does after he finishes his online classes! Yay! (Oh, and Fletcher Mann is supposed to be like the "Fisherman" painting in the Brown Area of the game. Seriously though, coming up with names based off of paintings is harder than you'd think!) Anyways, please let me know if you guys have any other ideas for this story. And thanks for reading and comments are always appreciated!**


	12. All Alone

_She was in the back of her brother's car, sitting beside her sister. She had no idea where they were going or where they were. All she knew was that it was raining and that there was a heavy fog all around them. In fact, as she stared outside the window, all she could see was a hazy, gray fog. No buildings, no trees, no sign of life._

 _Suddenly, there was something bright ahead of the car. Looking forward, she could see another car coming towards them on the other side of the road. The car's headlights were extremely bright, and she had to close her eyes to keep from getting blinded. When she finally opened her eyes again, the other car was gone, and in front of them was a very sharp turn. She and her sister gasped while their brother desperately tried to turn the wheel in time. Unfortunately, the road was way too slick, and the car slid past the turn and down a long hill. She screamed and held onto her sister as the car continued to gain speed down the unrealistically long hill. Their brother tried to regain control of the car, but all of his efforts seemed to be in vain. Finally, the car stopped. It hit a tree, causing all three passengers to fly forward in their seats. Looking around, she realized that she and her sister were both unharmed. They both unbuckled their seatbelts and climbed out of the car and into the rain. Then, looking back at the car, she waited for her brother to get out. She waited and waited. But he didn't move. He couldn't move. He couldn't get out of the car. She screamed. She cried._

 _Her brother was gone._

"Ib! Ib, wake up!" Opening her eyes, Ib saw her sister, Mary, looking down at her worriedly. Mary's arms were outstretched as she held onto Ib's shoulders, showing that she had obviously shaken Ib awake. Sitting up, Ib realized that she was in her bed. Her entire bedroom was dark, which meant that it was most likely around midnight. Lifting her hand to her cheek, Ib realized that her face was wet from both tears and sweat. Her heart felt like it was pounding and her throat was hoarse.

"Ib, are you okay?" Mary asked. "You were screaming in your sleep."

"Mary," Ib muttered as more tears filled her eyes. Wrapping her arms around her sister, Ib began to sob uncontrollably. She was okay! Mary was safe! It was all just a terrible nightmare!

"Ib?! What's wrong? Are you okay?" Mary asked. Ib didn't respond. She couldn't respond. She was too busy crying.

Suddenly, Ib's eyes widened in fear. Where was Garry? Was he okay? Was her dream really just a dream? Letting go of Mary, Ib jumped off the bed and ran out of her room. Mary ran after her, whisper-calling her name. Ib ignored her as she dashed into her brother's room where she froze in the doorway. Garry was safe! He was asleep in his bed, snoring quietly. Overcome with relief, Ib sprinted across the room and flung herself on top of her sleeping brother. She cried into his shirt and held onto him as she listened to his heartbeat. He was alive! It was all just a dream!

"Hurm…?" Garry groaned as he began to wake up. Ib felt his body move as he tried to get into a sitting position, but he seemed to be failing with Ib laying on top of him.

"Ib? What are you-?" Garry mumbled as he began to gain consciousness. "Oh my gosh! Ib!" Suddenly, he grabbed ahold of her and held her as he finally realized that she was crying. "Ib! What's wrong?! Why are you crying?!"

"Garry!" Mary's voice came from behind Ib.

"Mary, do you know what's wrong with Ib?" Garry asked.

"I think she had a nightmare or something," Mary replied. "She was screaming in her sleep and I had to shake her awake."

Everything was quiet for a moment as Ib felt Garry's arms wrap tightly around her. He moved into a better sitting position as he held her in his lap. She continued to cry, but her uncontrollable sobs had now become soft cries as tears streamed down her cheeks. Garry began to run his fingers through her hair as he held her, something that always seemed to calm her down.

"It's okay, Ib. Everything is okay. It was just a nightmare. I'm here for you," Garry whispered in a slightly worried tone. Soon, Mary joined them on the bed as she wrapped her arms around both Ib and Garry. It took a few minutes, but Ib finally calmed down. Her soft cries turned into gentle whimpers as she pulled away to look at her siblings. They both looked rather worried as Garry forced a smile at her.

"Are you okay?" he asked. Ib nodded as she wiped her face with her wrist.

"Now, do you want to tell us what's wrong?" Ib nodded again.

"I had a really scary nightmare," she began shakily. "We were all in the car and it was raining… _sniffle_ … and there was another car… and the car's lights were really bright and we couldn't see… _sniffle hic_ … and when we could all see again, there was a turn… but the road was really wet… _sniffle sniffle hic_ … and we slid past the turn and down a hill… _sniffle hic hic sniffle_ … and then the car stopped when it hit a tree and… and… _sniffle_ … Mary and I got out, but… _hic sniffle_ … Garry didn't." As she finished her explanation, Ib began to cry again, however her sobs were softer than before. With fresh tears sliding down her cheeks, Ib grabbed Mary's hand and Garry's shirt, needing physical proof that her sister and brother were still here.

"I… I… _sniffle hic_ … I don't wanna… lose you guys… like… Mom and Dad!" Ib sobbed.

"Ib!" Garry sounded slightly surprised as his arms wrapped even tighter around her small, shaking body. Mary continued to hold onto them as she began to sniffle a little as well.

"I-it's alright, Ib," Garry said, sounding a little shaken now. "I know that must have been really scary. And I know I can't control what'll happen to us, but I want you to know that I don't plan on going anywhere any time soon. Okay?"

"I'm not going anywhere either," Mary added as she continued to sniffle and fight back tears. Ib couldn't help but smile a little. She could always trust Garry and Mary to help her feel better.

"I love you, Garry. I love you, Mary," Ib mumbled.

"I love you too, Ib!" Mary exclaimed as she pressed her face close to Ib's. "You too, Garry!"

"I love you both," Garry added as he kissed each of them on the forehead. "Now, why don't I tuck you two into bed again." Ib and Mary nodded and clambered out of Garry's bed. The three of them then walked back into Ib and Mary's room where the two girls settled back into their own beds. Garry tucked them in and kissed them both good night before he began to leave the room.

"Hey Garry," Ib muttered before he closed the door.

"Yeah, Ib?"

"I'm sorry for waking you up like that. And I'm sorry for waking you up too, Mary," Ib said quietly as she looked down at her bed sheets. Now that she knew she and her siblings were all safe, she felt a little guilty for disturbing their rest.

"It's okay, Ib!" Mary said from the other side of their room. "I'm just glad you feel better."

"Same goes for me," Garry added with a smile. "And if you have another nightmare, just come get me, okay? Good night, Ib. Good night, Mary."

"Good night," Ib and Mary said in unison. Garry then closed the door and went back to his room. As Ib closed her eyes and began to fall back to sleep, she smiled a little. She was glad that even though she had lost her parents, she still had an amazing twin sister and a fantastic older brother that would always be there when she needed them most.

 _With Garry and Mary with me, I'm never alone._

 **Hi! Sorry I haven't updated in a while. I had a bit of writer's block, and anything I tried to write just didn't sound right. (Lol "write" and "right". Aren't I so PUN-NY?!) Anyways, if any of you have any ideas for this, please let me know. Luckily, I have at least one or two chapters planned for Halloween, so I'll get that posted as soon as I can. As always, thanks so much for reading and comments are always appreciated!**


	13. Halloween

Garry stood and frowned at his reflection in the bathroom mirror. At the moment, he would have preferred to wear a plain T-shirt with his favorite navy blue coat and a pair of khakis or jeans. Instead, he was wearing a white, collared, button-down shirt with black pants and a black cape with a pair of fake fangs temporarily glued to his canine teeth. Poking at the fangs with his index finger, he silently wished that he was a real vampire.

 _Then maybe I wouldn't have to look at my reflection in the mirror and see how ridiculous I look_ , he thought. There was only one reason why he had put in the effort to dress as a vampire for Halloween. Okay, well, it was more like two reasons, and those reasons were named Ib and Mary. For the past two weeks, Ib and Mary had begged Garry to dress up and join them for trick-or-treating. Of course he would go trick-or-treating with them; it's not like he'd let two nine-year-olds go wandering around in the dark alone. But he definitely had not wanted to dress up for the occasion. They tried bribery, flattery, and simple, flat-out begging and whining. However, what had finally made him crack was their trademark "Pwease, big bruda" routine, where they each stuck out their lower lip and widened their eyes, all while making pathetic whining noises and repeating the phrase "pwease, big bruda". They had started doing that when they were only three when they had wanted Garry to sneak into the cookie jar and get them each a cookie before dinner. Unfortunately, it had worked then, and it still worked now.

Feeling like he had been glaring at his reflection for long enough, Garry left the bathroom and walked towards Ib and Mary's bedroom. He knocked on their closed door with his knuckles and then leaned towards it with his ear. He could hear Ib and Mary giggling excitedly on the other side.

"Are you two ready yet?" he called. "If we don't leave soon, all the good candy will be gone."

"Coming!" Mary replied. About a minute later, the door swung open, revealing Ib and Mary all dressed in their costumes. Garry couldn't help but smile a little. His sisters made an adorable pair of witches! Ib was wearing a long, dark red dress with a pointy witch's hat in the same color. Mary had a similar dress and hat, except that her outfit was entirely green. Both girls also held wands along with the pillow cases that would hold their candy.

"How do we look?" Ib asked shyly as she tugged at the ends of her dress.

"You two look great!" Garry exclaimed. "Oh, hold on one second!" With that, he ran into his room with his vampire cape flapping behind him, and grabbed his phone. He returned a moment later with the camera setting turned on and aimed the lens at his sisters.

"Here, I want a picture!" he said as he knelt down in front of them. Mary rolled her eyes before she and Ib both smiled at him. Pressing the small red button on the phone's screen, Garry took the picture and then smiled happily. He then turned his phone off and placed it in the back pocket of his pants.

"Wow Garry, when did you turn into Mom?" Mary giggled jokingly as she jabbed her elbow into his side while Ib simply laughed beside her. For a moment, Garry was about to defend himself, until he realized that she was right. Their mom had always loved to take photos whenever she got the chance, and it had always been something that Garry found to be tedious and annoying, especially when he was the subject of the picture. He had never really liked to take that many pictures until his parents had died almost a year ago. Now, if he would scroll through the pictures on his phone, he would find photo after photo of Ib and Mary.

"Shut up," Garry grumbled as he shuddered at the thought. Mary and Ib both laughed while Garry began to make his way towards the front door of the house.

"I like your costume, Garry," Ib said in an attempt to lighten the mood as she and Mary followed him.

"Really? I don't," Garry replied with a half-hearted chuckle. "These stupid fangs are really annoying."

"Well, I like it," Ib told him. "You make a great vampire." Garry couldn't help but smile a little at his sister's compliment.

"So, are we goin' or not?" Mary asked eagerly as she bounced by the front door.

"Yes, just let me grab my keys," Garry laughed as he rolled his eyes. He then picked up his keys from the coffee table in the living room, followed Ib and Mary out the front door, and then locked it behind them. Shoving both his hands and his keys into his pockets, Garry then followed his little sisters as they skipped happily to the first house. Standing at the end of their neighbor's driveway, Garry watched as Ib and Mary knocked on the door and then sang out "Trick-or-treat!", before they both received a piece of candy.

 _Don't forget to say "thank you", don't forget to say "thank you",_ Garry thought, remembering how his parents had drilled that into his head as a child. Luckily, it seemed that Ib and Mary had remembered their parents' mantra as they both sang out a "Thank you!" to their neighbor before running down the driveway towards Garry.

"I got a mini chocolate bar!" Mary exclaimed happily.

"I got a Reese's peanut butter cup!" Ib said with a smile.

"Next house!" Mary declared as she thrust her wand into the air. She and Ib then began to march off towards the next house with Garry close behind.

For a while, that was their routine. Ib and Mary would run off to knock on the door, say "trick-or-treat" and "thank you", and then they'd run back to Garry with more candy. Despite not doing much besides following them around, Garry couldn't help but feel like he was having a little fun with his sisters. When they weren't running from house to house, Ib and Mary were pretty fun to be around, and he enjoyed talking and joking around with them as they walked together.

"So, you two are gonna share your candy with me, right?" Garry asked jokingly as his sisters returned from another house.

"I dunno," Mary said with a mischievous smile on her face. "I guess I _could_ give you some candy. Or maybe I won't! Ha ha!"

"You wouldn't give your big brother any candy? Even after I took you guys out trick-or-treating and wore this costume?" Garry said as he fake pouted.

"Alright, fine! But only 'cause you're bein' a big baby about it!" Mary laughed.

"I'll share my candy too!" Ib added happily. Garry chuckled as he pulled Ib and Mary into a side hug while they walked. The three of them continued laughing until they reached the next house. However, instead of running eagerly towards the door, Ib and Mary froze as they stared at the house's open garage.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Garry asked as he looked down at them.

"It looks kinda scary," Mary muttered as Ib nodded in agreement. Garry frowned a little and looked up at the house. To be honest, it was a little creepy. There was smoke coming from within the garage, and flickering lights made it harder to see everything inside. From what they could see, there seemed to be several figures in the garage, either leaning against the wall or sitting in a chair. There was also a large spiderweb with a fake spider clinging to it on the back wall of the garage, and a skeleton with a rope around it's neck hung from the ceiling. Leading up to the garage was yellow police tape with fake blood dotting the driveway, and gravestones with zombie hands reaching out of the ground filled the front yard. The owners of the house had done an excellent job decorating for the occasion, however, Ib and Mary didn't seem to appreciate that.

"Well, do you wanna go onto the next house?" Garry asked. "It's not like you have to go in there if you don't want to."

"N-no. I wanna go in," Mary said. "But, will you go in with us, Garry?"

"Yeah, I'll go in with you two," Garry said. It was just a normal house with creepy decorations. How scary could it be?

Taking Ib and Mary's hands in his own, Garry led his sisters into the garage. There didn't seem to be anyone there, so for a moment, Garry considered turning back. However, one of the figures that had been sitting in a chair suddenly moved, causing Garry to jump slightly. The figure was dressed as a zombie, and the makeup was very realistic. Luckily, the zombie simply held out a bowl of candy, offering it to Ib and Mary. Slowly, they each took a piece of candy and dropped them into their pillow cases.

"T-thank you," Ib and Mary squeaked. They then began to tug on Garry's arms, silently telling him that they wanted to leave. Just as he was about to turn around and leave, all of the other figures in the garage suddenly began to move. They all groaned and moved towards them, with their arms outstretched as if they were ready to attack. Walking backwards, Garry accidentally stepped on a small button on the floor. The button was connected to some wiring which led to the spider web. The fake spider then jumped out towards them, it's eyes glowing red and it's eight legs wiggling around.

"Hyeeeeeeeeek!" Clutching his sisters' hands, Garry sprinted out of the garage, down the driveway, and onto the sidewalk. He didn't stop running until they were two houses away, and when he finally stopped, he doubled over and started panting heavily.

"Are… you two… okay?" Garry asked between gasps. As he looked up at them, Ib and Mary immediately started laughing.

"Yeah, we're fine," Mary giggled. "But, what about you?"

"I didn't know your voice could get so high, Garry," Ib added as she laughed.

"I-I wasn't scared or anything!" Garry stuttered as he felt his cheeks burn. "I was just startled! That's all, I swear!"

"Sure, bro," Mary laughed as she punched him in the side.

"I was just startled!" Garry said defensively as he crossed his arms. Ib and Mary continued laughing, and pretty soon, Garry started to laugh too. He had to admit that his reaction had been a little extreme, and in a way, humorous.

"C'mon, let's keep going. There are still a few houses left," Garry said. Ib and Mary nodded and then followed him as they continued on to the next house. Together, they went from house to house collecting candy, and soon they came back to their own home. Stepping inside, Garry immediately pulled off his vampire cape and threw it haphazardly onto the couch. Plopping down on the plush seat cushions, Garry watched as Ib and Mary sat down on the floor in front of him and dumped the contents of their pillow cases onto the coffee table.

"Ooh! Look! I got a Laffy Taffy!" Mary exclaimed as she began to unwrap it.

"I got a lemon candy!" Ib added happily. "Oh, and here you go, Garry." Ib then reached into her pile and pulled out a few pieces of candy and held them out towards Garry. Mary then did the same, and Garry gratefully took the candy.

"Thanks! So, did you two have fun?" Garry said.

"Yeah! That was really fun!" Mary cried as she threw her arms in the air for emphasis.

"I liked getting to trick-or-treat with you guys," Ib said. "And thanks for coming with us, Garry."

"Yeah, thanks for coming!" Mary added. "And I'm glad you did, 'cause if you didn't, we never would've heard you scream like that!"

"You're welcome, and for the hundredth time, I was just startled!" Garry said with a little laugh. Ib and Mary began laughing too as they both climbed onto the couch to hug him. Wrapping his arms around his sisters, Garry smiled and held them close.

"Happy Halloween you guys!"

 **Well, Halloween is tomorrow, so I met my deadline for this chapter! Yay! (Btw I'm dressing up as Ib for Halloween, but I doubt that anyone will be able to guess who I am.) Also, the idea for Ib, Mary, and Garry's costumes came from a drawing done by Kouri for the first Halloween after Ib came out. In it, Ib and Mary were witches, and Garry was a vampire. Anyways, I really hope you guys like this chapter, and I hope you all have a fun Halloween, whether you're going trick-or-treating, going to a party, or handing out candy while hanging out with friends (which is what I'll be doing). Happy Halloween! And thanks for reading and comments are always appreciated!**


	14. Apple Pie and Burnt Lasagna

It was a beautiful autumn day in early November. The sky was a bright blue with a few clouds floating by. Leaves of all sorts of vibrant colors clung desperately to the trees as the wind fought hard to blow them away. Despite the cool breeze, the air was relatively warm as the sun shone down from behind the clouds. It was the perfect day for jumping in leaf piles or eating leftover Halloween candy, but Ib didn't think that she would be doing either of those things. Instead, she was in her brother's car with her siblings, traveling down the road towards the cemetery.

 _Today is November fifth,_ Ib thought to herself. _Today's the day that Mom and Dad died a year ago._

Slowly, the car came to a stop on the side of the road, right in front of the cemetery. Garry put the car in park, pulled his keys out of the ignition, and then reached over towards the passenger's seat and grabbed the small bouquet of brightly colored red, yellow, and blue roses that they had picked up at a flower shop on the way to the cemetery. The three of them then all stepped out of the car and began walking, hand-in-hand. Ib walked in between her brother and sister, listening to the sound of the fallen leaves crunching beneath her feet. Turning to her left, Ib watched as Mary walked with her head low, staring at her feet. Her normally bright, blue eyes, which were usually filled with happiness and mischief, were now clouded over and hazy in appearance, as if she could cry at any moment. Turning towards her right, Ib looked up at Garry. His dark eyes seemed to be even darker now as he focused his gaze on the grave-spotted land in front of them. He wore a tight-lipped frown as he clutched the bouquet of roses in his left hand, slightly crumpling the white tissue paper that they were wrapped in. Ib frowned as she faced forward. She hated to see Mary and Garry like this.

Suddenly, Ib felt her body being pulled to a stop. Looking down, she could see a small, rectangular gravestone. On the front of it were two names: Jonathan and Emily Rose. Below that were the dates of birth and death, and there was a decorative border on edges of the stone.

 _Mom and Dad's grave,_ she thought. Bending over, Garry gently laid the bouquet of roses in front of the grave and then immediately straightened back up.

For a while, Ib, Garry, and Mary stood there in silence. Ib didn't like the silence. She wanted to speak, but she wasn't sure what to say.

 _Should I ask them how they're feeling? Should I ask if they're okay?_

"I miss Mom and Dad." Mary's sudden words were so quiet, that for a moment, Ib thought that her sister hadn't spoken at all.

"What was that, Mary?" Garry asked as he and Ib turned towards her.

"I miss Mom and Dad," Mary repeated without looking up.

"I know you do. We all do," Garry said quietly. Ib frowned. Her siblings both sounded so upset. She couldn't really blame them though, but she still didn't like it.

 _Maybe instead of remembering that Mom and Dad died on this day last year, we should remember the good memories that we had with them,_ Ib thought.

"Hey, remember when we would have dinner together in the evenings?" Ib said as she smiled. "Mom's dinners were always really good, and we'd all get to eat and talk together."

"Yeah, I especially loved Mom's lasagna," Mary mumbled dreamily.

"But, don't forget her desserts," Garry added. "She made the best apple pie!"

"Mmm!" Mary exclaimed, smacking her lips. "Her apple pie was so good!"

"Oh, and do you remember that one time when Mom went away for a business trip, and Dad tried to make her lasagna?" Garry asked with a laugh.

"Yeah! He completely burned it!" Mary giggled.

"And then he set off the smoke detector," Ib added, "and we had to order pizza that night!" For a while, they all stood there laughing and reminiscing over the good times that they had with their parents. Ib wasn't sure how long they talked and laughed in the middle of the cemetery, but it felt like a pretty long time. Finally, Ib could hear her stomach grumbling, so she asked Garry if they could get something to eat.

"I guess it is around noon," he said as he looked at his watch. "Why don't we stop somewhere for lunch?" Ib and Mary nodded and then followed him as he began to walk towards the cemetery's front gate. Holding onto her siblings' hands, Ib took a moment to look back at her parents' grave. She smiled a little and then turned forward again, returning her focus to the path ahead of her.

 _Even if we miss Mom and Dad, we can always remember the good times that we had with them._

 **Well, here you go! I was really determined to get this out by today (since today is November 5th). I actually have other important dates planned out for this series, such as Ib and Mary's birthday as well as Garry's birthday. Anyways, I hope you liked this! And thanks for reading and comments are always appreciated!**


	15. Broken

It was very late at night. Everything was dark except for the headlights of the Rose's minivan as it drove down the road. In the driver's seat was Mr. Rose, who was trying to keep his eyes on the road while also watching over his seven-year-old daughter in the backseat. Mary, who sat behind her father, was resting her head on the back of her seat. She could never sleep very well in the car, but she still felt completely exhausted after the day's events.

It had all started earlier that morning. She had gone to a local park near their house with her brother and sister. It was fun at first; Mary and Ib played and ran around together while Garry watched them. However, when Mary decided to play on the monkey bars, her hand had slipped from the bar and she fell. She felt a terribly sharp pain in her right arm and she immediately started crying. Luckily, Garry was there and he picked her up and carried her home while Ib did her best to comfort Mary. When they got home, Garry explained what had happened and Mr. Rose took Mary to the hospital. At the hospital, the doctors took X-rays of Mary's arm and discovered that she had a minor fracture in a bone near her wrist. They then wrapped her arm in a cast and gave her pain medication to decrease the pain in her arm. The day had been such a blur to Mary, and now all she wanted to do was sleep.

"How are you doing back there, Mary?" her dad asked, shaking her from her thoughts.

"I'm okay. Just sleepy," Mary replied with a yawn.

"Don't worry. Mommy and I will help you get into bed as soon as we get home,okay?"

"Mmhmm," Mary nodded.

After a few more minutes of silent driving, Mr. Rose finally pulled the car into the driveway. Mary then carefully climbed out of her seat and followed her father to the front door. As they entered their house, they were immediately greeted by Mrs. Rose, who had been sitting on the couch in the living room.

"Mary! How do you feel? Does your arm hurt? What did the doctor say?" Mrs. Rose rambled worriedly as she bent down on her knees in front of Mary.

"I'm okay, Mommy. My arm doesn't really hurt anymore," Mary replied. "I'm just tired."

"The doctor gave her some pain medication," Mr. Rose explained. "And luckily, he said that it was just a minor fracture, and that she'll need to keep the cast on for about three weeks."

"Well, I'm just glad you're okay," Mrs. Rose said as she kissed Mary on the forehead. "Now, let's get you to bed. It is past midnight, after all." Mary nodded and followed her parents up the stairs towards her bedroom. However, just as she was about to reach her room, Garry's bedroom door swung open.

"Mary! You're home! Are you okay?" he asked, sounding both relieved and worried.

"Garry, keep your voice down. Ib is still asleep," Mrs. Rose warned him. "And besides, I thought that you were asleep as well. What are you doing up?"

"Sorry, Mom," Garry whispered sheepishly. "I couldn't sleep. I was just really worried about Mary."

"I'm fine, Garry," Mary said. "The doctor put my arm in a cast, and it doesn't hurt anymore."

"That's good," Garry said with a small smile.

"Alright, now let your sister rest. She's exhausted," Mr. Rose told him.

"Okay. Good night!" With that, Garry gently ruffled Mary's hair and then walked back into his room.

Mary then walked into her own room, and - with the help of her mother - she changed into her pajamas. It was a bit of a challenge to get her cast into the sleeve of her nightshirt, but she managed to get dressed. When that was all over, Mary climbed into bed and tried to get comfortable. Unfortunately, the cast was very clunky, so this was also a challenge. However, when she was finally in a good position, her parents kissed her good night and then left the room. It didn't take long then for her to fall asleep.

* * *

The next morning, Mary woke up and looked at the alarm clock on her bedside table. It was almost ten o'clock, which was pretty late for Mary, since she usually woke up around eight thirty on the weekends. Climbing out of bed, Mary walked down the stairs and into the kitchen where she found her parents and her siblings sitting at the table and eating breakfast.

"Mary!" Ib exclaimed as she saw her coming towards them. Before Mary could react, Ib jumped out of her chair and hugged her sister, carefully avoiding her cast.

"I'm so glad you're okay! I was really worried!" Ib cried.

"I'm okay, Ib! My arm doesn't hurt anymore," Mary said. Ib smiled and then pulled Mary over to her seat at the table. As she sat down, she saw that there was a bowl of cereal ready for her.

"How are you feeling, Mary?" her mom asked.

"I'm fine," Mary replied as she clumsily picked up her spoon in her right hand.

"Don't worry, you'll get used to doing things with that cast on," her dad said.

"I hope so," Mary mumbled. "I don't like it."

"But Mary, having a cast can be pretty cool!" Garry said. "You can have people sign their names and draw pictures on it."

"Really?!" Mary asked excitedly. Garry nodded. "Can you draw something on it, Garry? You're really good! You too, Ib!" Mary smiled as she looked at her brother and sister, waiting for an answer.

"Yeah! I'll draw something really pretty on your cast," Ib said happily.

"Of course I'll draw something on your cast, Mary," Garry added. "But, after breakfast, okay?" Mary nodded and then immediately began to devour her cereal.

After breakfast was over, Mary led Ib and Garry to her room where she pulled a box of markers out from under her bed. She then sat down on her bed and rested her arm on her bedside table. Ib and Garry picked up various markers and began to draw all over her cast, with Ib drawing on one area, while Garry drew on the other.

"Alright… and… done!" Garry said as he pulled back the marker.

"Done!" Ib exclaimed.

Mary smiled as she looked at her cast. Ib had drawn an adorable pink bunny with her name signed beside it. Garry had drawn beautiful red, blue, and yellow roses with his name signed into one of the blue petals. Mary squealed happily and gave her brother and sister each a one-armed hug.

"Thank you! I love it!" she cried. "You guys are the best!"

"You're welcome!" Ib said.

"Yeah, no problem," Garry added. "And if you ever need help with anything while you have that cast on, I'm always here."

"Me too!"

Mary beamed. Even though her arm was broken, she had her brother and sister with her!

 **Woo! I got this done! This took forever! I've been going through a bit of writer's block, and anything I wrote just didn't sound right. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this, especially since this was another chapter based off of my own experience. I broke my arm the same way Mary did at around the same age. I also broke both my arms when I was eleven, but that's a whole other story. Thanks for reading and reviews are always appreciated!**


	16. Thanksgiving

"Woah! Look at the Snoopy balloon! It's huge!"

"Look at the pretty floats! They're so cool!"

Garry smiled as he sat on the couch with Ib and Mary on Thanksgiving morning. They were watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade as they always did every year. By now, Garry had seen enough parades to know that they were all pretty much the same, but Ib and Mary still found them exciting, so he was willing to sit through it. Besides, he had off work for the next two days, and he wanted to spend as much of that time hanging out with his sisters as he could.

"Garry, which is better?" Mary asked, snapping him out of his thoughts. "Floats or balloons?"

"I don't know," Garry shrugged. "Uh, both are cool, I guess."

"No, you have to choose!" Mary said as she folded her arms across her chest and puffed out her cheeks. Garry held back a laugh. She just looked too cute when she made that face!

"Uh, I guess I like the floats?" he replied.

"Yes!" Ib said happily.

"Aw c'mon! What about the balloons?" Mary whined.

"Honestly, I prefer to watch the marching bands over the balloons and the floats," Garry added quickly, before Ib and Mary could argue.

"Well, that's just 'cause you're a weirdo!" Mary said as she rolled her eyes. "The floats and balloons are much prettier."

"But the marching bands have amazing music and dance routines."

"I guess that's true," Ib agreed quietly.

"Oh look! There's Santa!" Mary exclaimed, bringing an abrupt end to the conversation. Turning back to the TV, Garry watched as the familiar jolly, old, fat man waved to the crowd as his festive float drove slowly down the streets of New York City. Mrs. Claus sat next to him, smiling and waving to everyone while the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade finally came to a close.

"Well, now that the parade is over, why don't you two go get showers and get dressed," Garry said as he stood up from his seat. Ib and Mary nodded and then raced off towards the bathroom, with Mary shouting that she was going to get there first. Garry laughed a little and shook his head as he watched them, and then walked into the kitchen.

As he looked through the cabinets, refrigerator, and pantries, he couldn't find anything that seemed suitable for a Thanksgiving dinner. Besides, they didn't even have a turkey, and he didn't really want to go out and buy one at the last minute either. Plus, Garry wasn't sure that he would be able to properly cook a turkey, since his cooking skills were still on an amateur level.

 _One would think that after a year of cooking for my sisters that my skills would have improved a bit by now,_ he thought. _Apparently not._

"What are you doing, Garry?" Turning around, Garry saw Ib standing only a few feet away from him. _When did she come into the room?_

"Oh, hey Ib. I guess Mary got to the bathroom first?" Ib nodded with an annoyed frown. Garry laughed.

"So, what are you doing standing in the middle of the kitchen?" Ib asked.

"I was just trying to figure out what we're going to do for dinner tonight," Garry replied.

"Oh, because you can't cook a turkey?" she said with an innocent-looking smile.

"Hey, I can cook!" Garry said defensively. Ib giggled.

"But what about a few months ago when you burned the spaghetti and there was smoke all over the house?" Ib reminded him. Garry sighed. That had been a disaster.

"That was _one_ time. And don't forget that Dad burnt the lasagna that one time when we were younger," he said as he crossed his arms.

"True. I guess you and Dad just aren't good at cooking," Ib laughed.

" _Anyway_ , what do you wanna do for dinner tonight?" Garry asked, changing the topic. Ib shrugged. "Okay, how about we go out to a restaurant for dinner?"

"That sounds good!" Ib said happily.

"Then it's decided then! I guess now we just have to wait for Mary to get out of the shower so that we can get ready."

* * *

Later on, Garry took Ib and Mary to one of the few restaurants that were still open on Thanksgiving. They sat down, ordered their food and drinks, and munched on complimentary rolls.

"Sorry we can't really have a traditional Thanksgiving dinner," Garry said as he finished off a roll.

"Oh, it's alright!" Mary said cheerily. "This is fun too!"

"Plus, we're actually celebrating Thanksgiving this year," Ib added quietly. Garry nodded a little as he thought back to last Thanksgiving. Last year, they hadn't bothered to celebrate at all, since their parents had died only a few weeks earlier.

 _Last year, there really wasn't much to be thankful for,_ Garry thought. _But this year is different._

"Yeah, that's true. But this year we actually have something to be thankful for," Garry said as he smiled a little. "Even though Mom and Dad are no longer with us, we at least have each other. And I'm definitely thankful for that."

"I'm thankful too!" Mary smiled brightly. Turning to Ib, who was sitting beside her in the booth that they were in, Mary wrapped her arms around her in a tight hug. Ib giggled and eagerly returned the hug while Garry watched happily from his seat across the table.

"Happy Thanksgiving!" he exclaimed as he held up his soda. Ib and Mary cheered as they clinked their glasses with his. Garry smiled and then took a sip of his drink, and Ib and Mary did the same.

 _Celebrating Thanksgiving in a restaurant with my sisters. What could be better than this?_

 **I'm so sorry for not getting this chapter out by Thanksgiving. I was really hoping I'd get it done in time, but I've been busy and I had a bit of writer's block. I guess it's better late than never, right? Anyway, I hope you still enjoyed this, and I hope you all had a fun Thanksgiving! (Btw, little fun fact: the part where Ib mentions Garry burning spaghetti and there was smoke all over the house was actually taken from my own childhood. Fun times!) Thanks for reading and reviews are always appreciated!**


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